Deadly Games (1989 film)

Thomas de Frémont, a child prodigy obsessed with tinkering and action films, lives in a secluded and high-tech castle with his widowed mother, Julie, his diabetic and partially blind grandfather, Papy, and his pet dog, J.R. On Christmas Eve, Thomas uses the Minitel to try and communicate with Santa Claus, and unknowingly makes contact with a local derelict who is using a public Minitel terminal. The deranged man claims to be Santa, and attempts to get Thomas to divulge his address; before their connection is severed, the vagrant learns that Thomas's mother manages a nearby Printemps.

While Thomas sets up a security system to record or capture Santa, the vagabond gets a job as a Santa at the Printemps, but is fired from it after Julie witnesses him slap a child who had accused him of not being the real Santa. The vagrant subsequently steals a Santa suit, paints his hair and beard white, and hitches a ride to Julie's home in the back of a delivery van, the driver of which he kills upon reaching the de Frémont residence. The man then murders Julie's groundskeeper and her chef, breaks into her home through the chimney, and stabs J.R. to death in front of Thomas, who is convinced that the intruder is an enraged Santa. What follows is a game of cat and mouse as Thomas uses his security system and booby traps, as well as an arsenal of makeshift weaponry, to defend his enfeebled grandfather and combat the trespasser, who has cut the telephone lines and trashed the only car; the man at one point catches Thomas, but then lets him go while declaring, "I win. You lose. Now... I'll go hide myself, and you'll be it. Okay?"

Julie, concerned over her calls home not getting through, phones the police, who send an officer to the castle to check on Thomas and Papy. The vagrant murders the policeman and recaptures Thomas, but the boy is saved when his grandfather manages to shoot his assailant with the dead officer's gun, with Julie arriving home seconds later to find a stunned Thomas standing over the killer's body, stammering, "It's my fault, Mom. I wanted to see Santa."

In 2018, the film had its North American premiere at the Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas, after having been restored by American Genre Film Archive.[7][8]

René Manzor and Deadly Games won Best Director and Best Film, respectively, at the 1990 Fantafestival.[9]

Virgile Dumez of aVoir-aLire commended the film's cast and direction while noting that, "despite some clumsiness, it remains one of the best representatives of what French cinema can offer when it dares to leave its comfort zone."[10] John Squires of Bloody Disgusting gave Deadly Games a glowingly positive review, heaping praise on its setting, cinematography, the relationships between its characters, and its sinister villain before concluding, "Deadly Games doesn't shy away from going to nightmarish places, but it's also got that holiday warmth you just love to see in Christmas movies."[11] Fellow Bloody Disgusting reviewer Meagan Navarro also enjoyed the film, writing, "One creepy Santa, some surprising peril for its young lead, and a heavy lean into the holiday setting makes for an unexpected new holiday favorite."[12]

The "crazy and out-there" film was awarded a score of 6/10 by Jason Adams of JoBlo.com, who complimented its action set-pieces and its realistic child protagonist, writing, "Thomas may be a badass Rambo Jr. with some of the tricks up his sleeve, but the movie never lets you forget that he's also a child suffering real injuries and crying for his mom. It's a brutal but unique spin to this kind of horror flick, one that you can't believe the filmmakers actually went for."[13] Peter Martin of Screen Anarchy offered high praise to Deadly Games, writing, "I was utterly bowled over with happiness. Sure, it's your standard clever kid vs Santa Claus home invasion tale (?!), made before Home Alone, but it's exceptionally smart, funny and kinda fiendish too. It's a great family action movie for families who hate the holidays."[14] Rafael Motamayor of Polygon commended the "slasher horror" film's "emotional stakes" and how it "fluctuates between whimsy children's humor and horror, using the kid-friendly first half to lure you into the horrors to come."[15]

• Internet homicide
• List of films featuring home invasions

• Official website
• Deadly Games at IMDb
• Deadly Games at Rotten Tomatoes